I have two separate opinions here one that agrees with you about Suarez and another one that Falco would be much better false 9 for Bayern but I'd wish him to stay at Athletico Madrid years to come.. some one must represent capital of Spain and intertain La liga
A. Madrid are in financial problems he'll leave. He even said recently competing with Barcelona/Madrid isn't easy and especially with Messi/CR in Spain. A. Madrid are a promising team with Koke/Turan/etc. Sadly they'll have to invest in someone else. Falcao is a #9, so he can't play the false 9 role
A. Madrid are in financial problems he'll leave. He even said recently competing with Barcelona/Madrid isn't easy and especially with Messi/CR in Spain. A. Madrid are a promising team with Koke/Turan/etc. Sadly they'll have to invest in someone else. Falcao is a #9, so he can't play the false 9 role
lol, now that's embarrassing Anyway this year they will qualify for CL and probably will end up second in the Ligue. I hope he will stay because Chelsea/City/PSG would be worst places for such a player to go ... Arsenal / Milan / Bayern / Borussia Dortmund / Juve the best choices, but sadly non of those clubs have that much money to spend.
With ManU interested in Lewandowski and RVP in the squad I don't see them making a bid for Falco
lol, now that's embarrassing Anyway this year they will qualify for CL and probably will end up second in the Ligue. I hope he will stay because Chelsea/City/PSG would be worst places for such a player to go ... Arsenal / Milan / Bayern / Borussia Dortmund / Juve the best choices, but sadly non of those clubs have that much money to spend.
With ManU interested in Lewandowski and RVP in the squad I don't see them making a bid for Falco
Indeed. I wouldn't want to see him there either. Those clubs may have ambition, but the players are mainly there for the money at the end of the day. Arsenal would be good, but I highly doubt it, as they won't be able to offer him enough money, but it'd be nice to see him at Milan/Dortmund/Juve. I heard Balotelli signed with Milan? lol
I think Lewandowski already signed a deal with him, sad to see him leave Dortmund, I wonder why he's leaving...Rues/Gotze will probably play the false 9 role.
There was no PK a foul outside of the box. You are delusional and letting your Italians fanboyism get the best of you. the "MOFO" didn't grab his leg, the Italian tripped over him and took a free PK.
oh really ?
[video=youtube;cS6Wqt00gTc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=cS6Wqt00gTc[/video]
if you still think that MOFO didn't grab Fabio leg then you are also blind and ignorant like Ovrebo,
and by the way that Vid was made an Aussie so he is nowhere near biased....
its clear and fair PK, the defense launch a tackle to the opposition in the penalty box, he missed the ball and when the player tried advance the defense grab his leg :shrug:
'I don’t agree with Mourinho at all on this. It is right that my Chelsea side was badly disadvantaged then, the call that bothered me was the hand ball penalty we were denied in injury time. That was a clear mistake from the referee." said Hiddink
The Chelsea manager at that time (2009) spoke mainly about the Pique hand ball.
Guus Hiddink eh ? that guy is not one to talk in times like that since he was the one who lead the Korean **** in 2002
and he said nothing about it, so when his team get the same reception by the REF,he shouldn't be talking at all,
its just after the match, things still get messy, but after that they made an analysis, pros Like Gullit agree that there's at least 3-4 penalty for Chelsea
Indeed. I wouldn't want to see him there either. Those clubs may have ambition, but the players are mainly there for the money at the end of the day. Arsenal would be good, but I highly doubt it, as they won't be able to offer him enough money, but it'd be nice to see him at Milan/Dortmund/Juve. I heard Balotelli signed with Milan? lol
I think Lewandowski already signed a deal with him, sad to see him leave Dortmund, I wonder why he's leaving...Rues/Gotze will probably play the false 9 role.
Materazzi mentioned something about Mario wearing AC Milan socks in Inter's dressing room '' thought Mario was a AC Milan FAN'' .. I think poor guy just woke up in the wrong bedroom that morning
also I saw weardest news from scandinavian news portal that stated that Real Madrid are interested in Arsene Wenger. I DONT THINK IT WILL HAPPEND. But with billion tons of respect to Wenger and all the **** that happened to him and he's coaching career at Arsenal, board that can't keep good players. Real Madrid for Wenger... would be well deserved, he's one of the best coaches and is 100% committed to his work. Real Madrid + Arsene = <3
PSG
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At these matches, I'll support Celtic and PSG. Juventus are favorites, for sure but still Celtic may turn it into a draw or a win...who knows?
Valencia vs PSG is a cool and a close match, but PSG should win this. They are the better team so they shouldn't let Valencia win this match.
---------- Celtic's squand:
Even if this remain a very good result for PSG - as it's an away victory with 2 goals scored. But they still missed it up in second half and I hope for them, that this isn't going to haunt them at Parc des Princes. They should have made it 3-0; had Lavezzi not miss 2-3 good chances in second half. Then came the late goal of Valencia on free-kick with Rami's flick. And also, Zlatan's red card - a red which looks severe in my eyes when I watch the replays. Also, Veratti will miss the return leg. Still, they did play much much better than in November or so. And I must admit, Lucas' arrival is synonymous with this better PSG. His pace, skills and power are exceptional. Something, I already knew but it's great that he's showing this on CL Platform. Lavezzi is also faring much better in a central role. Apart being Argentinian, there's many glimpses of Tevez in his play. Valencia is a good team but sincerely, they were outshone by PSG tonight and a 1-2 scoreline is pretty flattering and still hopeful for them...
Celtic v/s Juve: 0-3
Well, this might have been a predictable scoreline before the match but still, the match isn't reflected with this score. I was mostly expecting Celtic to defend a lot but they played extremely and I mean, extremely high against Juventus. Quite frankly, even if the defence of Juventus was okay, this was a disappointing performance from Juventus. Even in their counters, they were sloppy and the midfield were pretty sloppy in passes. They score the first goal; in what was a huge blunder from Celtic defense and their 2 remaining goals were scored in last 15 minutes when Celtic played were arguably out of juice. I was hoping to see a more dominant Juventus tonight as I perceive them as one of the favorites but I guess, what matters is the result as I always say. And with their ruthless tactical approach and opportunistic flair, they really made themselves comfortable for the return leg and a more than-probable quarter final.
Okay, done with the appetizers. All eyes and more on Madrid v/s United now.
I am a huge supporter of barcelona but i want real madrid to win . With thier men returning from injury i think they have enough quality in thier team to beat this manchester united side. Manchester united seems to be having a walk in the park in the league and looks most likely to win it , so i will like to see how they fair against this madrid team who have set most of thier sights on champions league glory . With ronaldo also coming off a hatrick last week that should be a huge confidence booster. I am going for a 2_1 win for madrid.
Well, I'll be updating this post with live-commentary and live-updates of the match. Though, in case, the match gets too nail-biting, my hands won't get on the keyboard In that case, you'll excuse me xd
Getting close to it...-God of War- posted the squad players below...Thanks for that
Manchester United (4-2-3-1): De Gea; Rafael, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra; Carrick, Jones, Kagawa, Welbeck; Rooney, van Persie
Real Madrid (4-2-3-1): Lopez; Arbeloa, Ramos, Varane, Coentrao; Khedira, Alonso; Di Maria, Ozil, Ronaldo; Benzema
- Champions League Anthem Starting...Anticipation building-up....
0' - Here we go! RM Kick-off...
1': Madrid is pressing high as United is keeping slow passes.
1': First shot of Khedira which got off-target. Nice movement from RM.
2': Kagawa is the one who's keeping the ball better for now in United. No man-marking on CR7.
3': Di Maria acceleration sent me a chill but his shot is luckily off-target. Second shot
4: Yellow Card! RVP. Severe one...
5': POST for RM. This is getting more and more suffocating with each attack...
8': Misunderstanding between Varane & Lopez. First corner for United.
12': United trying to break the last line of Madrid without much success for some mins. now...
16': Elbow of Ramos on Evans. That was a bit intentional...
19': Goooooooooooooooooooooooooooal! Welbeck on a Rooney's corner. 0-1
22': First- on target shot by Di Maria... Saved by De Gea.
26': United's goal on their first chance, is really a fantastic operation for now.
27': Fantastic left-foot shot by CR7 on a follow-up of his free-kick. Close but off-target. Sent me a shiver.
33': Damn!. So close for Welbeck. Closely deflected by lopez on a great cross of RVP.
34': Rooney....Tried to round 3 players and shoot. Shot closely off-target.
36': 11-6 in Attempts stats for now (for RM)...As per TV!
37': Ozil' shoot on a long-through ball by Alonso. Saved by De Gea into corner.
39': Yellow card for Rafael!
42': Missile by CR7! Really close. Phew....
43': United really need to hold this 1-1 score by half-time. RM is really pushing hard...\
46': Contrao whips an excellent cross for CR7 whose header went agonizingly close...
HALF-TIME!
Many more chances for Madrid but that was to be expected as they are at Bernabeu. Ronaldo's headers and shots always created danger; with one of his header finding the net. Contrao's post shot also was one of the main moments. United seized the moment on that corner with Welbeck; and the latter also got the second best chance for United as his deflection from RVP's cross was saved barely by Lopez. I think, United will be more compact in defence if they are leading or if they are still tied by the hour-mark.
I know, my updates are really short but as usual, I'll do a long review with details on players' performance and physiognomy of the match at the end of the match. For now, my eyes are way too stuck on the TV.
Second-half!
51': Quite some back-and-forth action for some time now. With the defences solid enough for now.
52': Long-range shot by Di maria but saved pretty easily by De Gea.
53': What a volley by Di Maria for 20 yards! Off-target but cold sweat for De Gea!
53': Oh mY! Last-ditch defence from Varane on Evra who was rushing onto goal. No foul given but there was contact! It's a pretty lineant referee we got here btw.
58': Di Maria is impressive today!
59': Benzema OUT! Higuain IN!
60': WHAT A SAVE by De gea! This guy has some crazy leg reflexes as he saves Contrao's shot after Khedira's cross.
62': Just some thought as Madrid got possession! The goal from CR7 was a mirror reflection of his bullet header in CL's 2008 final.
64': Kagawa OUT! Giggs IN!
67': Madrid is pressing high now; in search of a goal.
69': Ronaldo cuts a low-cross of Higuain but off target!
71': F**k! Double-chances for RVP! His shot on the bar and seconds later, he misses his shot and Alonso saves it on the line! RVP should have scored there!
73': Welbeck OUT! Valencia IN!
74': Corners are piling up for Madrid! And they are also shooting a lot which are being deflected by United defence!
75': Di Maria OUT! Modric IN!
76': Higuain try a shot without much power! Saved by De Gea; even if he seemed blinded by his defence. Come on, De gea, keep it up!
79': Shot by Khedira which is saved by De Gea after a long spell of possession by Madrid.
80': Great chance for Giggs but unfortunately, given his weak right foot, he didn't finish the chance.
82': Alonso OUT! Pepe IN!
83': Rooney OUT! Anderson IN!
85': So close for CR7! A free-kick from 37 yards or so and it went just over the bar!
87': Yellow-card for Valencia for an elbow on Ramos; who again did lots of cinema.
89': United still hanging on to this 1-1 draw as we get....+3 minutes of additional time!
91': Evans & Jones remove the ball barely from Ronaldo's feet as he was about to finish from close-range!
92': Lopez saves Madrid! RVP sends a good volley which is parred by the gk into corner!
93': End of the match as United players are contesting against the referee because he didn't let the last corner being played.
Oh well, there, we are: 1-1 as I'll do an elaborate review in some minutes! Stay tuned!
Manchester made a really good game, and also scored first. Real created more chances and had a better attack...they attacked more, had a good presure agaist Manchester. Manchester had a good defence, and at the first half, they played a deffending game more than an attacking one. Both teams scored with a header...Welbeck almost scored twice, and tht would be shocking for everyone.
etc.......
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I don't know what to say about Shakhtar- Dortmund, cause I wasn't watching that game. But a 1-1 result looks...a little tricky and weird for Dortmund. I thought Dortmund would score 2 goals since in the first half, and Shakhtar one. But looks like Dortmund lost a lot of good chances, and Shakhtar made a really good free-kick by scoring first! Possession os very close, but on total attempts Dortmund look the better team in attack.
Overall, I said that a draw was a fair result; though a 2-2 would've reflected the match better imo. United played pretty high in the first half; though a bit in vain as Madrid gain quite chances. But on their true first chance, United scored on the corner. Afterwards, United played pretty defensively. Not like Chelsea but more of a high pressing from their own half. Ronaldo's equalizing header; as I said; was a mirror from the CL's 2008 Final against Chelsea. Gotta admit, his elevation and power was impressive.
In second half, United clearly decided to defend more and more as I did predict at half-time. They did try to bury a goal in early instants but as Bernabeu was boiling, they decided to hang on. Must say that few even dared to believe that United could grab a draw at Bernabeu; and as I pointed before, we weren't such huge underdogs.
So, it's 2 goals from headers, 2 posts for each side (Contrao in early moments of the match and RVP later on...). There were also 2 boiling moments that was pivotal in my eyes; first De Gea's out-of-the-world save with his legs and then RVP's missing his shot as Alonso saved the ball on the line. Otherwise, both sides got quite some chances which could've have tilt the tie in different direction. Madrid obviously got more shots and attempts; given the amount of possession but one thing I'd point out, is that Madrid had way too many chances off-target - a sin they could regret once they leave Old Trafford.
Statistically speaking, a draw away from home with a goal scored favors United but as we know, with 2 such big sides on the fixture, this tie remains more than undecided. Compared to MU's fiasco in 03' at Bernabeu and then their hard-fought victory at Manchester, despite Ronaldo's hattrick, I'd say that this performance leaves room for optimism at Old Trafford if they up their game.
Player-wise: Lopez wasn't much a reliability in my eyes; he especially got lucky on Welbeck's 2nd attempt where he deflected the ball with lots of good fortune. Did the crucial stop on RVP's last volley though. The centerbacks - Ramos and Varane - got few to do and can't say they did all, with complete mastery. Varane was better in some tackles; though the last-ditch comeback on Evra was a foul in my eyes. Not a red card but definitely a foul with a possible yellow. Ramos, didn't impress and he was even faulty on the winning corner as he lost his marking on Welbeck. Mostly showed him with cinema antics. As he cried a lot; which influenced referee to give a yellow to both Valencia & RVP! His elbow went on Evans went much more unnoticed. More on refereeing later on... Arbeloa went for a pretty harsh night and had many players coming down his flanks. Conterao had Welbeck more, in center, so he was much less in jeopardy defensively. He was very good in offensive tasks though; touching the post, having his deflection saved outstandingly by De Gea & also whipped dangerous crosses.
Alonso & khedira did their fair task of their job and were instrumental in Madrid's pretty lengthy possession spells. Ozil created quite some openings and his passing and movement gave constant nuisance to Jones. His permutation with Ronaldo also lead to quite some confusion between United defenders. Di Maria was probably the greatest nuisance with his dribbling skills and accelerations. Him, who is often inconsistent, was shining bright tonight as he repeatedly tested De Gea but unfortunately not rewarded. His exit surprised me.
CR7? Well, maybe he was destined to score. Much less venomous than expected on the wings but had quite some chances in both halves, especially in/near the box and from 2 free-kicks. Probably the best Madrid player along with Di Maria. Benzema was poor; and his substitute Higuain wasn't any better. Modric was behind the last chance of Madrid as his cross was successfully netted in by CR7. Pepe didn't touch much the ball; and luckily didn't touch much legs of United's players either.
On United! All hail De Gea xd Not that this was his best match but his save with his legs will do impression round the globe. He dealt with most on-target shot well and his lack of physicality in corners didn't matter. Shot-stopping wise, he was great; especially since Madrid tried a lot of far-shots but as I said, luckily many off-targets. I was expecting Rafael to be more tested but since Ronaldo came into the box more and Benzema wasn't much of a threat inside it. Rafael did what was needed most of the time, and luckily his early yellow didn't turn red! Evra had a hell of a night against Di Maria and was powerless against Ronaldo's goal. Ferdinand and Evans were pretty composed both on the grounds and in the air. A much more assuring performance that what I did fear.
Jones helped the defence a lot in the box. Originally tasked to man-mark Ozil, the German's constant movement to the flanks forced him to be literally a 5th defender as time moved on. Still, did his job fairly well but was wasteful in his passing. Missed Cleverley there! Carrick also shielded the defence for most instance like Jones, and similarly was a bit wasteful in possession compared to his usual self.
Kagawa debuted the match as striker that tried to stretch Madrid's defence (a role he left Welbeck after the latter's goal). He maintained possession better than Carrick & Jones and his passing was instrumental in certain United's attacks. Removed for Giggs who did the same role but both would have shined better if United had better possession. Welbeck was a surprise! He again had quite impressive work-rates but he also did score this time, the crucial goal and he nearly add a second later on. Subs Valencia & Anderson didn't got time to shine.
Rooney was probably the best passer of United and often calmed the tempo after some Madrid tempest. As usual, never hesitated to help his defence but his long ball didn't have the expected cutting edge as RVP or Welbeck were often lonely against two defenders. Also, expected Rooney to grab more chances offensively as he had only 1 shot. Nearly assisted RVP whose shot crash onto the bar and removed shortly after that.
RVP dropped deeper than usual; having Welbeck and Kagawa roaming in front of him. Did the same role of Rooney of protecting and flicking the ball to calm the game. Had 3 great chances: One onto the bar, one that he missed and was saved on the line and one parred by Madrid's GK in dying instants. For the ball he missed to volley with power, I think he thought he was offside and this split-second distraction distabilise him. It's costly as this goal would have forwarded United with a big big momentum for return leg. RVP didn't have the same offensive hunger though today as some of his previous matches. Let's hope, he'll shine more at Old Traffford.
Some words of referee Brych who didn't have any extreme scandalous decisions but many of his decisions did favor Madrid. Notably giving 2 yellow to United players after Ramos' acting while the latter wasn't sanctioned for elbowing Evans. Then there was the non-given foul on Evra by Varane. Also, to stop the match before the last corner was pretty shocking. Hey, Mr., this is United, you are refereeing and there's something called Fergie time, @sshole xd Oh well, that's part of the game.
